Bosque de sombras (2007)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Paul	Gary Oldman
Norman	Paddy Considine	½
Isabel	Aitana Sánchez-Gijón	½
Lucy	Virginia Ledoyen	½
Paco	Llúis Homar

Review

Modelled after John Boorman's Deliverance, Koldo Serra's Bosque de sombras feels good, has quality behind the camera, and strives hard not to make one-dimensional characterizations and depictions. At first glance, it largely succeeds, as Oldman gives life to a complex, real and highly interesting character, and Serra presents him with an intriguing mystery backed with a wonderful musical score. It is quite obvious from the set off what kind of tone is lurking, but that is reasonable enough, given that the characters and clash between them are given the right treatment. They are only partially. As it goes along and the tension intensifies, Bosque de sombras becomes less composed and more unmotivated. There are too many questions left unanswered, such as the girl's situation or the motivation of the Considine-character towards the end. The film also suffers quite a bit from the language barrier faced by Sánchez-Gijón and Ledoyen. It's not their accent that is a problem, but rather that their line delivery in English seems forced, as if they were reading off a prompter. And Considine's idea of 'uncertain man pushed into a corner' is vague at its best. The final twenty minutes of this film lands somewhere between predictable and random - without being quite able to shake of neither. Oldman is the treat, with a few brilliant scenes that easily elevates the film - take a look at how he accepts the praise he receives from Paco when the two practice shooting together. That is acting with a sense of detail.